That's Final
by Mint Pizza Queen
Summary: The third and final installment in the Sasuke and Naruto drabble series. Contains 45 themes. SasuNaru. COMPLETED.
1. Theme 1

_Author's Notes:  
Back by popular demand._ _I present to you Part III of On the Contrary due to high requests for a third series and plus I took a poll. I finally finished the other drabble series and wanted to get this start right away to get you guys started back into the grove, you know? Anyway, here's part III, Sasuke x Naruto of course. I think you get the hint. _

**NARUTO** © MASASHI KISHIMOTO

* * *

**Drabble Rating: **K  
**Status: **1/45  
**Word Count: **117 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme: **Special 

There's just something special about the way the two fit together so perfectly.

It's as if they were made for each other.

Their bickers and squabbles, their routine training in the woods, the kisses and hugs, the way their names were said.

'_Sasuke and Naruto'._

It just never seemed right unless both were together. Sasuke wasn't Sasuke unless it was Sasuke **and **Naruto. And Naruto wasn't Naruto unless it was Naruto **and **Sasuke.

If anyone were to ask the two why people thought this, they would simply turn to each other, smile, and say oh so calmly—

"Oh, it's nothing special."

But they both knew that it was something special, but really, did anyone need to know?


	2. Theme 2

**Drabble Rating: **T  
**Status: **2/45  
**Word Count: **245 words  
**Warning:** Deception is a con's friend.  
**Note: **Sorry for the lack of updating. Been to the US Embassy and Canadian Parliament. That and fighting a cold. T.T  
**Theme: **Heads or Tails

"Neh, Sasuke," Naruto rolled onto the dark-haired boy's back, throwing an arm over him possessively as he snuggled into the warmth of the Uchiha. "I have a request..."

Sasuke mumbled something that the blond took as a 'what is it now?'.

The boy pushed himself up so he was kneeling on the mattress and sighed. "I want to be on top tonight."

There was a loud thud as Sasuke fell off the bed. Just as quickly as he disappeared, he reappeared beside the mattress. "What?"

Naruto shifted. "I want to be on top, I'm bored with being on the bottom. Let me have one turn tonight," he then gave the best puppy eyed expression possible. "Pleeeeeease?"

Sasuke snorted. "That expression only supports the fact that you should be uke."

"Ah! Sasuke! You're so mean!"

"All right, here's an idea," Sasuke dug into the stand and pulled out a coin. "How about we flip a coin, heads I top? Tails you bottom?"

"Sure!" Naruto snapped before he realized what was going on.

Sasuke flipped the coin, watching as it landed on the mattress. He glanced at it. "Tails, you bottom." With that, he grabbed the coin and tossed it back into the drawer, kicking it shut.

The blond wasn't as thrilled. "Aw, that's not--hey, wait a minute--"

Sasuke crawled up the mattress and over the blond, pinning his wrists to the pillow.

"--either way I would've lost!"

The Uchiha smirked. "Yup."

"You bastard!"


	3. Theme 3

**Drabble Rating:** K  
**Status:** 3/45  
**Word Count:** 470  
**Warning:** None.  
**Notes:** Well, better late than never, right? Sorry about lack of updates.  
**Theme:** Bad Day

Naruto glanced at the sky and released a soft sigh. Making his way through the trail, he rubbed at the back of his head and occasionally kicked at a stray pebble.

Today was just--one of those days, per say. One where everything that could go wrong, went wrong.

The morning started off with him waking up late--blinds open and sun blasting him in the face. Then upon getting ready, he discovered he was out of ramen and had no clean clothes.

On his way out, he discovered that his day was only going to go further downhill from here when he found his door covered in raw egg and whip cream.

Oh how right he was when he ran out of the village after being chased by a group of Kyuubi haters wielding bats and skillets.

"Hey, Naruto."

Now there was Sasuke to contribute to the miserable mood.

Naruto looked up to see Sasuke standing in a clearing next to a stump, kunai in hand. He appeared to have been doing some training with his weapons. The Uchiha had an eyebrow cocked questioningly.

"What are you doing here?"

The blond shrugged. "Just wandering."

The kunai Sasuke had been holding suddenly found its way onto the palm of his hand. Blinking, Naruto gave Sasuke a perplexed glance.

The Uchiha pointed to the stump. "Go ahead."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

Naruto scowled at him, but took the kunai nevertheless and threw it harshly at the stump. The kunai hit its target and embedded itself deep into the wood. The blond looked up to the Uchiha with a scowl. "Okay, now what?"

"Tell me what's got you in this--" Sasuke tilted his head as he paused before finishing the sentence."--mood."

"Nothing does!"

Stare.

Naruto scowled and huffed with annoyance, still refusing to answer. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Naruto, I can tell what's going on." Blue eyes shot up suddenly. "You're having a bad day. Well, okay then. Everybody has them."

Naruto smirked darkly. "Oh, so you're telling me that the great Uchiha Sasuke has bad days too? Who would've thought Mr. Perfect himself would suffer the same as the common folk?"

The Uchiha snorted. "Don't put me out like that."

The blond shrugged before turning. "Whatever. I'm outta here."

"Wait."

Head of blonde turned and tilted questioningly, eyebrows knitted with impatience.

Sasuke pointed a thumb to the stump and twirled a kunai with his free hand. "Want to train with me?"

Naruto's frown deepened.

The Uchiha held out a kunai to the blond. "I find training helps me vent my frustration and anger."

That's when it hit Naruto-- Sasuke was only trying to help him get out of this mood he was set in. A small smile appeared on his face as he grabbed the kunai. "Okay, let's go."


	4. Theme 4

**Drabble Rating:** K  
**Status:** 4/45  
**Word Count:** 471  
**Warning:** None.  
**Notes:** Angst. Tragedy. Character death.  
**Theme:** Regret

Naruto? Can you hear me?

No, I know you can't.

Listen, I'm sorry--about the other night. I said some mean things I shouldn't have and--well, I'm sorry.

I'm really sorry.

And, well, you were right. I'm too bull-headed for my own good, and I realize that now. I should have seen it sooner, but it's too late now.

I know, you're probably saying '_It's never too late, believe it!'_, but it is for me.

Usually, when someone is at the end of the line, he or she thinks about their regrets. I have plenty, but at the moment, my only regret is this:

I'm sorry, but I won't be coming home tonight.

I won't be coming back at all.

I'm sorry.


	5. Theme 5

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 5/45  
**Word Count:** 300  
**Warning:** Crack.  
**Theme:** Thieves

"Give him back!"

_Crash._

"What the hell are you talking about?"

_Slam._

"You know what I'm talking about, asshole! Give him back!"

_Bang._

"I have no idea who you're talking about! Give back who?"

_Screech._

"Give me back Mr. Yum-Yum!"

"Mr. WHO?"

"Mr. Yum-Yum!"  
_  
Crash times two._

"Who the hell is Mr. Yum-Yum?"

_Slam times two._

"My nightcap, asshole!"

_Bang times two._

"Why the hell would I take your nightcap! It looks like a leech!"

"It is NOT a leech! It's Mr. Yum-Yum!"

"Again, why would I take that--thing?"

"I don't know! You're the evil mastermind, not me!"

_Pause._

"Don't take that as a compliment either, bastard."

"...it's gone..."

"Oh, so now you're trying to play the victim? I'm the victim here!"

"Where is it!?"

"Where's what!?"

"My lucky boxers!"

_Pbbt._ "Can't be too lucky if they got stolen, eh?"

"You took them, didn't you!?"

"Why would I take them? They're ugly!"

"You did **NOT** just make fun of my limited edition cherry tomato print boxers!"

"Oh yes I did! You made fun of Mr. Yum-Yum, so the **boxers get it too**!"

"SHACKLAHA!"

_Crash, slam, bang times nine and three quarters._

Meanwhile, outside the household, several ninjas stood by staring at the house. One ninja, wielding a bag of potato chips, turned towards the others with an eyebrow raised. "Um, do I even want to know?"

The pink-haired kunoichi beamed with her face turning pink. "Hm, not really." She whipped out a pair of cherry tomato print boxers and held them to her chest, releasing a dreamy sigh.

The pale-eyed girl standing beside her whipped out a certain nightcap and began to snuggle with it, face turning deep red with every little nuzzle.

The male ninja standing beside the chip wielder rolled his eyes and snorted. "Tch, troublesome fangirls."


	6. Theme 6

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 6/45  
**Word Count:** 108  
**Warning:** None.  
**Notes: **Can you guess the game?  
**Theme:** Game Over

_**GAME OVER.**_

The two words flashed repeatedly on the screen boldly. Sasuke gaped at the screen for a moment before hissing in distaste.

"Damnit!"

"What now?" Naruto entered the living room with a bowl of steaming ramen in one hand and a pair of chopsticks in the other.

"I killed Luigi again!" Sasuke harrumphed in annoyance.

Naruto blinked. "You know, maybe instead of letting the ghosts kill you, you could use that vacuum he's equipped with to beat them?" He shrugged at Sasuke's blank stare. "Just a thought."

The Uchiha blinked before glaring at the screen. "I hate video games."

"Only because you suck at them."

"Shut up!"


	7. Theme 7

**Drabble Rating: **K  
**Status: **7/45  
**Word Count: **170 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme: **Theatre

It was dark, save for the bright glare of the theatre screen. Sasuke blinked, trying to adjust his eyes to find the familiar spiked head.

Thus began his decent down the walkway, attempting to avoid dropped gumdrops and wads of gum.

"Naruto, you there?"

"Ah! Shuddap!"

Sasuke cringed. He ducked and slid towards the front of the theatre. "Naruto--"

"Move your head!"

"You're blocking my view!"

"Get the duck-butt hair out of the way!"

_Splat._

A thing of soda launched out of nowhere and exploded on impact, caking his hair to his face. A voice cackled and he whipped his head towards the source to find _him _laughing.

Naruto was laughing, holding a thing of nachos in pre-launch mode. Suddenly, he felt a glare burning on him. He paused, noticing the Uchiha. All in a split second, he grabbed the hand of the person seated next to him, placed the nachos on said hand, and quickly sat down feigning innocence.

"He did it."

"You're in big trouble."

"Yum, nachos."


	8. Theme 8

**Drabble Rating: **K  
**Status: **8/45  
**Word Count: **283 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Notes:** Just something to show I'm still here.  
**Theme: **Won't Leave You Behind

"Ack!" Naruto groaned loudly, drooping forward so he nearly fell on his face. "I'm so tired!"

"Naruto," Sakura chided. "Stop whining."

"Ugh," Naruto bowed his head. "Sorry, Sakura-chan." He dropped his pack on the grass beside the road and toppled onto his side so he was laying down, head resting on his dropped bag. "Go on without me. I'll be back--in a little while."

"Oooh, Naruto, you're so annoying! Get up! We have another hour's walk ahead of us and I don't want to spend another night out here," the pink haired girl growled.

The blond waved a hand. "Go on without me, I'll be fine."

Sakura twitched and Kakashi sighed mournfully. "Naruto," he started. "It's time to get up."

"Nnngrlpof."

Kakashi raised his visible brow before he eyed Sasuke, who remained indifferent and quiet the whole time. "Are you saying that you're going to allow Sasuke to one-up you in something?"

Sakura beamed at Sasuke, who gave a glare at their sensei that said, 'don't you dare drag me into this'.

Naruto merely snorted softly. "Mgf, too tired…sleepy…Sasuke…win…"

Kakashi dropped his head. "What a knucklehead."

"Here."

The jounin looked up only to have a pack shoved in his face. "Sasuke, what are you--"

"Take Naruto's too." Sasuke reached down and pulled the blond into sitting position before he pulled him up and onto his back in a piggy back-ride style. Grabbing Naruto's hands, he wrapped them around his neck and grasped the blond's legs. "Let's go." He started off-- leaving a stunned teacher and student behind.

He had only taken a few steps when he felt the boy snuggle into his hair and heard a soft, "thank you".

Sasuke smiled. "No problem."


	9. Theme 9

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 9/45  
**Word Count:** 354 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** Mother

"Damnit!" Sasuke cursed as he began to throw things in every direction from his closet. "Damnit, damnit, damnit!"

"Damn what?"

Sasuke head shot up as he whirled around to come face to face with the blond. "Naruto? What are you doing here?"

"Came to ask if you wanted to train with me, but you didn't answer the door, so I let myself in." The blond eyed the room and the mess within. "So uh--what's wrong?"

The Uchiha dove back into the closet. "Nothing."

Naruto smirked. "A whole lot of damnits for a whole lot of nothing."

"It's personal, okay?"

"What, you lost your cherry tomato print boxers again?"

Sasuke smacked his head on a shelf before he turned to give the blond an incredulous look. "What?"

"Oh, so it's not the boxers this time." Naruto placed a band to his chin. "Then maybe--you lost your wallet?"

"No."

"Headband?"

"Wearing it."

"Oh yeah--deodorant?"

"Bathroom."

"Porn magazines?"

"..."

"I'll take that as a no," Naruto bit the inside of his cheek as Sasuke resumed excavation in his cave. "Then it must be--"

"Found it." Sasuke crawled out of the closet, dragging out a dusty book. He wiped off the cover with a swipe of his hand.

Naruto blinked with confusion. "A photo album?"

"My mom's book of recipes."

"In your closet? Recipes? Sasuke, I'm confused--"

"I kept it so nobody would try to take it. I wanted it for days like these." Sasuke rose to his feet.

"Days like these? What's today--"

"My mom's birthday. I--I want to honor it."

There was an awkward silence in the room. Sasuke remained rooted, staring impassively at the book while Naruto fidgeted nervously behind him.

That was, until Naruto spoke up. "Can I help?"

Sasuke turned his head and blinked as Naruto added, "I didn't know my mom, or when her birthday was, so I never could really celebrate it, you know? So," he made vague gestures with his hands. "Can I--with you?"

The Uchiha stared for a second before his expression softened and he held the book out to Naruto. "Sure."


	10. Theme 10

**Drabble Rating:** T  
**Status:** 10/45  
**Word Count:** 269 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** Kiba

"Naruto!" A loud bang emanated from the front door as the perpetrator kicked it in. "You are in **so **much trouble!"

The blond looked up from mending his shirt and blinked. "Kiba?"

The dog boy growled. "Damn right! Why didn't you tell me you and that Uchiha were smitten!?"

Naruto blinked again. "Smitten?"

"Living together? Screwing each other senseless? Saying mushy-gushy 'I love yous' every night in bed?" Kiba paused. "Oh god, sharing the same underwear!?"

"Woah, okay, slow down. Yes, we live together. Yes, we screw each other. Yes, we trade 'I love yous'. But for god's sake we don't wear each other's underwear! That's just gross!"

"And trading spit isn't?" Kiba twitched.

Naruto gave an annoyed stare. "You and Hinata do it. Or do you have a better name for it? Eating her tonsils? Cleaning her teeth? Tongue wars?"

Kiba flushed. "Okay, scratch that part. But why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you knew."

"Well obviously I didn't if I'm here now!" He barked.

"Everybody else seemed to know."

Kiba blinked. "Every...one..."

"Even Akamaru."

At that, dog boy whipped his head to his dog and snarled. "You traitor! You never told me!"

Akamaru gave a bored yawn.

Kiba threw his hands in the air. "Why is the world so cruel?"

"Hey uh--you might want to leave before Sasuke comes back." Naruto folder the shirt and smiled. "He doesn't like to have his afternoon play time interrupted."

Kiba stared in horror for a moment before he took off, arms flailing and mouth open wide, yelling things about '_damn that Uzumaki for scarring poor Inuzuka's like me.'_


	11. Theme 11

**Drabble Rating:** K  
**Status:** 11/45  
**Word Count:** 174 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** Home Cooking

'_Growl.'_

Naruto's head snapped up with an alarmed expression. "What was that?"

The growl resounded and Naruto swiveled his head to see that the sound was coming from where the Uchiha was sitting, looking slightly flustered and tired.

"Oi, Sasuke, you okay?"

He made a face and held his stomach with his arms.

Naruto frowned. "You're sick? When did that happen!?"

"Not sick," Sasuke grunted as suddenly, his stomach let out another loud growl and his face dusted with pink.

The blond's eyebrows shot up and he gave a knowing look. "Oh! You're hungry!"

'_Growl.'_

Sasuke gave a sheepish expression. "I haven't had any good home cooking since before I left for that mission. I'm even partial to going to Kakashi's house and eat dinner there."

The boy jumped up. "You don't want to eat his cooking! It's not even edible for his ninja dogs. Wait a few minutes, I'll make you some ramen!" With that, he made a mad dash into his kitchen.

'_So typical,' _Sasuke thought. '_But at least it's home cooked.'_


	12. Theme 12

**Drabble Rating:** K  
**Status:** 12/45  
**Word Count:** 272 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** Where's Naruto

"Oi, Kakashi, where's Naruto?"

The silver-haired man overlooked his orange book of goodness to see Sasuke staring at him expectantly. The Jounin lifted a hand and scratched his chin boredly. "He went training with Jiraiya this morning. I don't know when he'll be back, but if Jiraiya is going to teach him something new, he won't be back for at least a week."

Sasuke visibly deflated like a balloon and the man raised an eyebrow. "Oh--uh, thanks."

"Did you need something?" Kakashi snapped the book shut and stuffed it into the safety of his pouch.

"No, not really. Just was going to ask if he wanted to spar with me, that's all." His voice was meek, and his expression distant.

The teacher stared at him. "Do you want to train with me instead? I'll spar with you until he comes back." He offered.

The Uchiha slouched even more, face contorted into one of extreme disappointment. "No, that's okay. I'll go home and study some scrolls."

"Getting lazy already? To think, I was only gone for a couple of hours. Tisk, tisk, shame on you," a mocking voice sounded from behind.

Sasuke whipped around and saw the grinning Naruto. "You're back?"

"Pervy Sage just wanted to check on me and see how much progress I've made. He had me do some fancy tricks and stuff like that, but nothing big" He closed his eyes only to open one a crack to peek at his teammate. "So, wanna train?"

"Yeah! Let's go."

Kakashi sighed at the sight before he headed back to the village in search of some entertainment--preferably a certain Chunin.


	13. Theme 13

**Drabble Rating:** K  
**Status:** 13/45  
**Word Count:** 162 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** Antisocial

"Sasuke?"

"Hm?" The Uchiha hummed with disinterest, staring intently at the scrolls he had laid out in front of him.

Naruto fidgeted before continuing. "How come you don't hang out with anybody?"

Sasuke looked up with a quizzical brow. "I hang out with you."

"I don't mean with me. I mean with other people."

"There's Sakura and Kakashi."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Someone other than the team?"

There was a long silence. Naruto waited impatiently as Sasuke stared off in space in thought.

"Well? Anybody?"

"...nope." Sasuke shrugged and went back to the scrolls.

"So why don't you hang with anybody besides the team?" Naruto asked with a persistent tone.

Sasuke finally groaned loudly and glared. "I'm not antisocial if that's what you're trying to prove."

"Well, you--"

The Uchiha rolled up the parchment and snorted. "I just don't like people, that's all." With that, he rose from the floor and left the room.

Naruto was left in a confused daze.


	14. Theme 14

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 14/45  
**Word Count:** 162 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** Superior

"Admit it," Naruto placed his hands on his hips and posed proudly. "I'm far more superior than you."

Sasuke gave a flat look before he barked a hard laugh. "HA! Idiot."

The blond held up a finger calmly and told the Uchiha just what he could do to himself with it.

The said Uchiha rolled his eyes. "What, you _want _me to lie? Lying is bad, Naruto."

"Yeah, well, you're lying now!" The boy snarled. "Admit it! I'm better!"

Sasuke sighed before giving in. "Fine, all right. I'll admit it. You're superior in every way imaginable--"

"Thank you!"

"--except height." At that Sasuke smirked triumphantly.

Naruto froze with a baffled look before he flushed and snapped his hand out to point. "YOU ASSHOLE!"

Sasuke shrugged his shoulders in defeat. "I said what you wanted me to say, but I had to amend myself at least partially. Now I can sleep tonight knowing that I did put some truth in there."


	15. Theme 15

**Drabble Rating:** T  
**Status:** 15/45  
**Word Count:** 471 words  
**Warning:** Boy on boy...sort of.  
**Theme:** Craving

There was something in the air. It was sweet--sugary, and quite rich. It was thick too, thick enough to make him sick.

Sasuke sniffed the air as he kicked the door to his home shut and pondered what the hell it was that was filling the room with this--sweet, delicious scent of pure sugar.

Blech, sugar.

But that's not the point, who the hell is in his house?

He practically dashed into the kitchen the moment he heard a loud "DAMNIT!" from the vicinity and nearly collided with Naruto, who in all his ninja glory, was clad in an apron that looked like something one would've found in Sakura's closet and had chocolate on his face.

Sasuke blinked repeatedly and Naruto stared back at him, face flushing. "I can explain."

"What's that smell?"

Naruto attempted to tackle Sasuke as he investigated the kitchen looking for the source--

--and he found it.

There on the counter were freshly made brownies.

Sasuke stared.

"Brownies?" He pointed to the pan and raised a brow. "The smell was brownies?"

Naruto frowned. "Did it smell bad?"

Sasuke approached the pan and sniffed them. "No, it smelled good. I'm not that fond of sweets or anything, but they smell--" He turned his head and shrugged. "Yummy?"

"Yummy?"

"Yeah, made me hungry." He twiddled his fingers in contemplation but held back to have a glare down with the blond. "What are you doing in my house?"

Said blond grinned sheepishly. "I don't have a working oven and had a craving for brownies."

"Why not buy some?"

Naruto gave him a look and Sasuke mentally slapped himself.

"Oh, fine." He huffed. "Wait until I get home next time. I don't want to come back to find my house a pile of ashes." He froze. "How did you get into my house anyway?"

Naruto pointed to the back door and grinned.

"YOU WALKED IN?!"

"I knocked."

"YOU WALKED IN?!"

"Twice."

Sasuke flailed his arms in exasperation.

Naruto grabbed him buy the shoulders and shoved his face close. "Relax, I used a key. The one you gave me a few weeks back, _remember?_" He took said key out of his pocket and dangled it in the boy's face.

Realization dawned on him and he nodded slowly. "Ooh."

The blond grinned. "So, wanna try a brownie?"

"I have a better idea," the dark haired boy smirked.

"Oh? What is that?" Naruto pressed his nose right onto Sasuke's challengingly.

Sasuke's smirk widened and he brought his mouth close to Naruto and--

--licked the chocolate at the end of the boy's nose.

Naruto stumbled back and flailed. "EW! SASUKE!"

"You still have some on your cheek; here, let me get it for you--"

"NO! STAY BACK! DON'T YOU--eww, Sasuke, your tongue is icky. Wait, why are you putting your hand there?"

"Leverage, Naruto, leverage."


	16. Theme 16

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 16/45  
**Word Count:** 255 words  
**Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** Overheard

"Oi! Ino! You'll never guess what I just overheard!" Sakura bounded up to the blonde with her arms waving excitedly.

Ino stared at her. "What? What's up?"

"Apparently Sasuke-kun was on a date last night!" Sakura's eyes were large and shocked. Ino's were soon bugging out of her head.

"NO WAY."

"YES WAY."

"WHO?"

"It was a blond!" Sakura started to count off on her fingers. "The hair was short, had blue eyes, and they were seen by Kurenai's and Gai's team last night."

"Well why didn't you ask them who he was with?!" Ino hissed with agitation.

Sakura frowned. "They said they didn't want to upset us, whatever that meant. But still, who had short blond hair and blue eyes that's a girl?"

"It wasn't a girl."

Both girls nearly fell over, but instead, swiveled on their heels to look expectantly at the Uchiha.

"WHO WAS IT?"

"YEAH, SASUKE-KUN, WHO WAS IT?"

Naruto popped out from behind the boy and waved with a smile. "Me!"

Ino broke down and Sakura's body went limp. "N-Naruto?"

Sasuke smirked. "I just couldn't help overhearing, so I decided to clear up a few things. Yes, it was Naruto who I was with, and no, you can't have him. Come along, Naruto." He strolled away with the blond bouncing at his heels happily.

Behind the girls, Neji popped out of a barrel and shook his head. "I tried to warn you. Never listen to Neji. Oh no, never listen to the smart one. See if I help YOU again."


	17. Theme 17

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status: **17/45**  
Word Count:** 196 words**  
Warning: **None.**  
Theme: **Wake Up Call

This wasn't happening.

Sasuke stared-eyes wide, mouth agape- as Naruto picked up the smiling girl (no,_ woman_) and spun her around.

The blond's face was glowing, as was hers. Their laughter was rich and full, not hollow and empty, and the surrounding people couldn't help but smile and become overwhelmed by their joy.

Sasuke felt the wind being sucked out of his lungs. The earth was spinning, _'No! This is all wrong!'_

Naruto's eyes met his and he dragged the girl over. "Sasuke! Sasuke! Hinata and I are engaged!"

His mouth was suddenly filled with sand, and he struggled to speak. A choked noise left his throat.

Naruto elbowed him. "Heehee, betcha didn't think I'd get a girl before yah, did you?" His expression turned serious. "Sasuke, as my best friend-"

_'No, please...'_

"-I'd like-"

_'...don't ask me...'_

"-for you to be-"

_'...I may die if you do...'_

"-the best man." Blue eyes were pleading. "Please?"

Sasuke's heart dropped, the world crumbled._ 'Was three years really worth it?'_ Slowly, he nodded, bringing out an overjoyed reaction from Naruto and received a tight hug as the boy rambled with excitement.

Sadly, Sasuke was three years too late.


	18. Theme 18

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status:** 18/45**  
Word Count:** 194 words**  
Warning:** None.**  
Theme: **Blue Burns Orange

"I wanted to be like you."

It's a startling revelation, and even when the words escape his lips, there's no going back. There's no changing his mind.

Naruto is not that easy to convince though. "W-what?"

The Uchiha looks away, trying to avoid going down the path of embarrassment. "I wanted to be like you."

The boy still looks miffed. "Don't screw with me, Sasuke. This isn't funny."

He clenches his hands into fists to keep himself from strangling the dim boy. "Does it sound like I'm joking?"

"Sasuke, I can't even tell when you're trying to be _nice_," the orange-clad ninja responds. "And when you say shit like that, what the hell am I supposed to think?"

Dark eyes travel to the ground. "It's true though. I-I really did. Still do-if it means anything to you."

He raises his gaze and finds that Naruto is only staring, expression blank. He gives up his tirade and prepares to leave when a hand grabs the sleeve on his shirt.

"It does, cause I also-I wanted to be like you, too."

Eyes meet, and Sasuke finds that he can't help but smile at the other boy.


	19. Theme 19

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status:** 19/45**  
Word Count:** 391 words**  
Notes:** Flash forward a few years, no Sasuke defecting, happy places.**  
Warning: **Language.**  
Theme: **Catching Up

It wasn't everyday that Sakura asked both Naruto and Sasuke to join her for lunch. So when she extended the invitation, Naruto was all over it like flies to honey.

"Sure! Sure! That would be awesome!"

Sasuke, whose norm would've been to decline such an invitation from the girl, accepted it graciously. "Where would you like to meet?"

After getting over their initial shock (Sakura stared, Naruto glared (who was this Uchiha to interrupt his precious lunch time with the pink-haired kunoichi?)), Sakura announced their destination.

Upon arrival, it was deemed to be a quaint little restaurant. Simple square tables that were large enough to fit four people were set up with plain tablecloths of different colors on each. After being seated and ordering their food, the only thing left was to sit and wait.

Sakura was glowing, elated to have her boys together with no arguing (yet). Sasuke seemed relaxed, leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed as he took in the sounds of everything around him.

Naruto was neither glowing or relaxed, more annoyed and anxious.

"So, Sakura, why the invitation?"

She beamed. "I missed my boys, and with you guys back from your missions, it was the perfect time to catch up with you two!" She started discussing the major turning points since their separation, including the training with Tsunade and embarking on several mission herself to several villages as a medic nin.

Naruto was so focused on her, he nearly missed the feathery brush against his ankle. When it brushed again, he jerked his foot back, only to have whatever was assaulting his foot to pursue after it.

He clenched the hem of the tablecloth and whipped it over his head, ignoring Sakura's cry for him to put the goddamn thing down before the waiter came back. To his surprise, it was another foot attacking his own, but that surprise turned to horror when he realized what it was attached to.

He flung the tablecloth back down, face burning as he pointed an angry finger at the boy sitting across from him. "Bastard!"

"Naruto!"

"He's playing footsie!"

Sakura gaped at Naruto before turning to the Uchiha. "Sasuke?"

The boy turned to her, expression smug while Naruto's face burned. "So, you wanted to catch up? Well, Naruto and I have the perfect story for you..."


	20. Theme 20

**Drabble Rating: **K**  
Status:** 20/45**  
Word Count: **317 words**  
Warning: **OOCness perhaps.**  
Theme: **Morning Person

The first thing Naruto discovered after moving in with Sasuke was that despite what anybody thought about the Uchiha boy, he was not a morning person. Yeah, he would get up early for missions, but that didn't mean he would be able to function like a human being at the wee hours of the morning.

When it came to having days off and no early training, Sasuke was dead to the world. Snuggled deep in his bed, a bomb could go off by his head and he would grunt at the bastard who'd dare to wake him from his slumber.

Naruto made the mistake of knocking over a stand, sending books, candles, and other trinkets crashing to the floor in a loud crash. In a quick panic, he rushed about straightening the stand and picking up the dumped items and replaced them back to their original spots.

The sound of a sliding door did nothing to calm his nerves. Instead, the hair on the back of his neck stood on end as a dark aura seeped down the hallway.

Several thumps and grunts later, a dark haired boy appeared in the doorway, face blank and eyes barely open.

The blond froze, mid-process of putting a book back onto the stand. Eyes wide, he stared as the boy slowly entered the room and stopped a few feet away from him. Eyes traveling up, he opened his mouth and spoke. "Er...Sasuke?"

"...nnngh..."

Naruto rose and slowly approached, stopping when he was right in front of the other boy. "Hey, you okay?"

A fist flew out, cracking against the blond's jaw, sending him spiraling back into the stand with a crash. Groaning in pain, Naruto opened his eyes to the carnage and blinked when he saw Sasuke blinking and rubbing his eyes.

"Nnng, dobe, what the hell are you doing?"

Naruto sighed. "N-nothing, nothing at all. Go back to bed."


	21. Theme 21

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status:** 21/45**  
Word Count: **539 words**  
Warning:** OOCness, language.**  
Theme:** Nightmare

Sasuke Uchiha is no one to admit to being scared of anything. He's a proud ninja, and if anything, likes to pick at others for their own fears.

Unfortunately for him, during a routine mission with Team Seven, Naruto did uncover a weakness.

They had turned in for the night - Sakura in her own room, Naruto and Sasuke in one, and Kakashi was prowling out in the night. Naruto had barely fallen prey to the threads of slumber when he heard a choking noise from the bed across the room.

Awakened, he jumped up- alert. He stepped slowly towards the bed, hands poised for battle. He cautiously reached out and poked Sasuke.

No response.

"Neh, Sasuke?" He pressed a hand to the boy's back and shook him.

The Uchiha jumped up, eyes wide, mouth open in a silent scream.

The expression startled the blond, who yelped as he jumped back. Reacting quickly, he jumped forward to grab him and calm him when Sasuke reacted, albeit violently.

He kicked away from the bed, legs became entangled in the sheets. Instinctively he lunged for the foot of the bed-away from the blond boy, only to land on the floor in a heap, thrashing like he was being attacked.

Naruto jumped forward and grabbed his flailing arms. "Sasuke, Sasuke, damnit! It's me! Calm the fuck down!"

Sasuke froze. He stared at Naruto blankly, almost as if he didn't recognize the boy in front of him. The cloudy expression slowly cleared and he blinked slowly.

Relief flooded Naruto. "Damnit, dumbass, trying to scare me to death? Scared yourself pretty good there, asshole!"

Sasuke's expression instantly changed from blank to murderous. "Get away from me."

"Big, Mister Uchiha, never scared of anything, having a bad dream?"

The Uchiha suddenly jerked his head forward, snarling. "Fuck you." His teeth snapped in the blond's face, shocking Naruto to release the dark-haired boy's arms and stagger away, falling onto his ass. Sasuke, satisfied, laid back down onto the floor, eyes narrowed as he glared into the darkness. "You know nothing."

Naruto flipped him off. "Then tell me, you asshole. Biting my nose off will do no good for you!" He started to crawl back to the other boy, but was stopped once more when an angry snarl ripped from Sasuke's throat.

"Don't come near me," his voice cracked. His eyes were too bright, too wet. He remained rooted to the floor, unable to find the energy to move.

The blond was undeterred. "When have I ever listened to you?"

"I'm warning you," Sasuke attempted to rise, but started to shake instead.

The blond hovered, watching him wordlessly before he laid next to him. "It's okay."

"No, it's not!"

"Shh," Naruto hushed him. "I have nightmares too. It's all right."

"But-did you really-" Sasuke hiccuped. _He's crying? _"Did you really see it? Live it? Breathe it? Taste it?"

A bitter smile appeared. "Yeah..."

Another hiccup escaped Sasuke's lips and Naruto reached out to him, wrapping an arm over him to pull him close. "It's okay, let it out. Better than to hold it in."

Sasuke clamped his eyes shut, struggling, before he gave up the fruitless battle and allowed himself to be consoled by the other boy.


	22. Theme 22

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status:** 22/45**  
Word Count: **342 words**  
Warning:** OOCness, language.**  
Theme:** Crazy

When Naruto got word from Kakashi that Sasuke was back from his mission and had already gone back home, the blond wasted no time in rushing to the Uchiha's place. He showed up on the front step pounding, threatening to rip the door right off its hinges.

"Open the door, asshole!"

When Sasuke didn't answer, Naruto let himself in with a well-aimed kick and waltzed into the main room. "Sasuke! I'm coming in!"

"You dumbass, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

The blond whipped his head towards the hallway and saw Sasuke. He was a mess- scratches all over visible skin, a deep cut was already patches on his forehead, and he was cradling his right arm.

_Wait..._

"What the hell happened to your arm?" Naruto charged.

Sasuke stumbled, then took off down the hall and veered into one of the rooms.

Naruto was right on his ass the whole time.

"Let me _see_, goddamnit!"

"There's nothing to see!" Sasuke found himself cornered. "I-it's just a sprain..."

Naruto wasn't convinced. He grabbed the upper part of his arm, and the Uchiha suddenly went paler than usual. His face contorted like he was going to be sick, and then his eyes suddenly rolled up, body going limp.

The blond caught him, only to fall onto his back in surprise. "S-Sasuke? Sasuke!"

After minutes of poking, prodding, and gentle persuading and bitching, Sasuke woke.

"Well, sleeping beauty wakes. Good news, it's not sprained," Naruto had managed to squirm his way out from under Sasuke during the brief nap and was hovering over him. He poked at Sasuke's patched head. "The bad news is that it's broke."

Sasuke growled at the offending hand. "It's not broke."

The offending hand traveled to the injured arm and hovered. "Wanna try that fainting trick again?"

The Uchiha huffed. "Crazy."

"Hey, I'm not the crazy ass going out an getting myself a sweet makeover of bruises and shit, not shut up so we can go get that arm fixed or else we'll play the fainting game again."


	23. Theme 23

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status:** 23/45**  
Word Count: **620 words**  
Warning:** ANGST.**  
Theme:** Jiraiya

It isn't until a year has passed since Sasuke's return does he realize how much has happened. The impact of the past years don't hit him until one day, he sees Naruto buying a bottle of the strongest sake from the market stand and heads out with a package of incense tucked in the bag with the alcohol.

He questions the closest person, who happens to be Iruka who looks on forlornly as the blond heads out of sight of both men. "It's the anniversary."

Sasuke is annoyed with lack of explanation and decides that if he wants answers, he's not going to go on a wild goose chase and will go to the source of the matter. He charges through the market, leaving behind a silent and stunned Iruka and follows the chakra trail left behind by Naruto as the boy (no, _adult_, he's no longer a child) wanders out of the residential and commercial areas of the village.

The Uchiha keeps a distance between the two of the them and doesn't feel at all surprised when he watches Naruto go to the monument with all the names of the past departed heroes etched into the stone. The blond regards the site for a moment before he sighs, placing the paper bag onto the ground as he digs out some of the incense and lights one, murmuring something before he sticks it into the ground in front of the memorial. With a quick bow, Naruto straightens before dropping down and sits cross-legged, pulling the bottle of alcohol out of the bag and pops the cover off loudly.

Sasuke finds himself intrigued and approaches. He stands beside the other wordlessly, watching as the incense smolders, a thick smell wafting up to his nose as the smell of sake mixes with it.

"I can't remember if you ever met him," Naruto speaks up first, doesn't even acknowledge Sasuke's presence before he starts his speech. "He trained me for the chuunin exams. He also trained me when you-" He trails off, eyes cloudy as he loses himself in memories. "He was the best. He understood what I was going through—and he became family." He grins and looks into the bottle. "He was a lot of fun. I wish I had told him when he was still around." With that, he knocks back the bottle and takes a large gulp of it before dropping it back down, pouring some onto the ground.

Sasuke stares at the spectacle before looking at the stone again. He searches for the name, the familiar name that Orochimaru had spoke of many times during his defection.

_'Jiraiya—'_

_'That fool wouldn't give up on me. So stupid, such things are useless to me.'_

_'—stupid fool, Jiraiya.'_

_'I don't need saving.'_

The Uchiha sits down and pulls his knees up close, trying to remember the face of the man that made Naruto into what he is today. He remembers Naruto's stories. A white haired hermit writer that was a pervert, jolly old man, large belly that rolled when he laughed –

The bottle suddenly finds its way under his nose and he blinks as the alcohol makes his eyes water, and he turns to find Naruto smiling. It's not a large smile, it's small and it's hopeful. "I think he would've like you, even though you are a bastard."

Sasuke isn't so sure about that statement, but takes the bottle and stares at its contents. "I wish I had met him."

Blue eyes sparkle. "Me too."

Sasuke tips back the bottle before he then shares some of it with the ground, watching as the soil darkens with every sip it takes.


	24. Theme 24

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status:** 24/45**  
Word Count: **293 words**  
Warning:** lol, boy one invading boy two's home, and Sasuke' potty mouth**  
Theme:** Closet

Reality decided to rear its ugly head the day that Sasuke opened up his closet and saw, much to his horror and utter surprise in how he didn't notice this _sooner_, nothing more than a sea of orange tee-shirts, jumpsuits, and pants, hanging nonchalantly next to his dark colored clothes.

He feels his eye twitch at the expanse of orange, _orange_, that resides in his closet when something decides to knock on the door to the Common Sense office in his brain. Heart racing, he pounces across the room and yanks open the top drawer where he stashes his underwear and finds, much to his utter bewilderment, brightly colored boxers next to his plain white ones.

Hands shaking, he pulls out a pair of green boxers with yellow swirls on it and stares with his jaw open, eyes panicked. How did he not _notice_?

Common Sense is called upon again as he yanks open the bathroom door and sees sitting innocently next to his own plain, blue toothbrush, Naruto's hideously orange colored one.

Along with the boy's shampoo, conditioner, body soap, and _what the __**fuck**__ was that orange shower curtain doing in his bathroom_?

He stumbled backwards, a hand groping at his chest as his heart raced. Panic set in as another little voice mentioned something about the rest of the house and the boy found himself racing into the kitchen and yanked open the fridge only to slam it shut almost instantaneously.

_Oh hell no..._

Throwing open the cupboard was like throwing that final straw on the over-burdened camel's back...

Seeing the endless sea of ramen cups, brightly colored labels sat on the shelves innocently and _mockingly_, Sasuke found himself throwing open the front door bellowing.

"NARUTO UZUMAKI, WHAT THE FUCK?"


	25. Theme 25

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 25/45  
**Word Count: **420 words  
**Warning:** Uh—whoops? Sorry dudes.  
**Theme:** Coward

When Naruto sends out a verbal invitation to Sasuke that uses the words 'training field', he's not going to think anything unusual about it. In fact, it's something that's routine for the both of them.

That's why when he shows up, headband tied on, weapons polished and ready, and Naruto _lacking _the headband and weapons, he thinks maybe Naruto's forgotten what the point of the meeting was.

Or Sasuke just hadn't realized that Naruto may have had other intentions for meeting up with him, something other than training.

"Naruto? Where's your weapons? I thought we were training..." Sasuke trails off when Naruto's expression turns to one of panic and he feels his chest clenching in concern. "What's wrong? What happened?"

The blond looks even more upset, blue eyes wide in fear. "I – I have a confession," his voices cracks and Sasuke's feeling some sort of impending doom that will soon befall them.

"Don't tell me you forgot," he tries to joke but it only seems to make the situation worse as Naruto shakes his head violently.

"No! Not training! I asked us to meet but this has nothing to do with training!" Oddly enough, the boy's cheeks are tinged red. Sasuke's starting the think that maybe the boy is ill.

"Then what–"

"I like you."

Words die on his tongue, dropping to the ground like flies and Sasuke feels like someone just dumped a bucket of water over his head. He tries to work his mouth, which cooperates hesitantly but his voice box has other ideas. Instead of a gruff, male voice he grew to be so proud of, he could barely squeak out a "_What?" _as Naruto looked up with cheeks flaming like cherries.

Naruto takes a deep breath and repeats himself. "I like you."

Sasuke decides to play stupid. "I like you too, you're a good friend–"

"No!" The boy shakes his head again and repeats himself with more determination. "I like _like _you."

The Uchiha can't play stupid this time. He knows he can't because he knows that Naruto can see his own cheeks flaming red, eyes widened into comical proportions.

Sasuke has gone through hundreds of confessions in his lifetime thus far, but Naruto's was the only one to make him feel completely out of control. So he did the only logical thing that came to his mind:

He turned and fled, leaving a stunned Naruto alone in the training field.


	26. Theme 26

**Drabble Rating:** T  
**Status:** 26/45  
**Word Count: **655 words  
**Warning:** Ahaha, pooooorn. If I let my mind get carried away, it'd be rated M for Mmmmm...  
**Theme:**Neighbor

She liked to think she was a good neighbor. She never slammed doors. She never yelled or carried on. She never played her music too loud, and she never had unruly guests. She always made sure her garbage was out in a timely manner, wrapped tightly in a garbage bag to keep the hallway from smelling, and considerately made treats for the neighbors like cookies, pies, and cakes for special occasions.

So when she woke one morning to the loud banging on the wall from her neighbors, her first thought was renovations. When it continued, _every morning_, for a full week, those innocent thoughts turned to ones in which she envisioned her neighbors angrily hammering away at the wall in a fit of hell-bent revenge.

She knocked away at her brain to try to remember if she had done anything wrong, but nothing came to mind. Admittedly, she was very unfamiliar with this specific neighbor, she knew a couple things.

One, the blond boy that lived there was as hyperactive as a rabbit on crack.

Two, the dark haired boy was a grouch who _hated _sweets (she'd never offer brownies to him again after that incident).

Three, they argued. A lot.

A light bulb went off in her head. Maybe they were fighting again. She'd have to take the initiative and try to stop this – whatever it was, before anything got out of hand or anyone got hurt.

So on the morning after fifteen days straight of banging on that same wall, she climbed out of bed and marched straight out of the door to bang on their door, trying to keep a calm head on her shoulders and a brave face in place—just in case if the dark-haired grouch decided to answer.

Which, he did.

He was giving her the dirtiest look, which looked more like a sourly expression with his face flushed, hair mussed, and clothes wrinkled and disorderly. She blinked before smiling. "Hi, uh—can I ask you what that banging noise is?"

He continued to scowl.

"Erm – every morning, there's a loud banging noise from your apartment," she pointed inside and tried to keep the building fear from bubbling out. "It wakes me up—and I was wondering if it would be too much trouble if I could ask what it is that you guys are doing that results in it being so, well, loud?"

Then the most shocking event happened.

He smiled.

Actually, it was more of a smirk, and his eyes glittered mischievously as he stared her down. "We're making porn."

Her brain screeched to a halt as the world tilted off its axis.

Porn?  
_  
'Porn?'_

"You mean—popcorn?" She asked hopefully, praying that she heard him wrong.

He stared again, smirk gone. "No, _porn_."

She could feel her face burn as images of him and that blond boy flashed through her mind, images of the bed slamming against her wall every morning, faces flushed, breathing heavily –

She squeaked, clapping hands to her cheeks to try to hide her embarrassment. "Oh—oh, w-w-well, I-I-I uh –"

"Hey, Sasuke, what are you – " The blond appeared and paused, then smiled at her. "Good morning!"

She knew that any minute now her burning face would set her hair on fire. She squeaked a quick apology before racing into her apartment, slamming the door shut.

Panting as she leaned against the door, she heard the blond let out a squawk before a loud slam was heard, presumably that being the door, and then there was silence.

Then the banging noises started.

She felt herself start to shake and she quickly dressed before dashing out, making up her mind that a morning jog was now to be part of her morning routine.

A jog that took her thirty miles away from the very neighbors that gave morning wake-up calls a whole new meaning.


	27. Theme 27

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 27/45  
**Word Count: **568 words  
**Warning:** There you go pulling me right back in, right back in, right back in...  
**Theme: **Beach

Sasuke hates the beach.

Nothing personal, he just hates it.

He hates the heat, the beating of the sun as he is trapped in the sea of sand that spreads out all around him like a desert. He hates the loud, obnoxious laughter of beach goers as they play games, race across the shore through the water, and even worse, party. Then there's the familiar couple where the guy picks on his girl and tosses her into the frigid waters, earning shrieks of false rage before an eruption of giggles burst out.

He just doesn't see what the benefit of going to a place where sand gets into everything and being burnt to a royal lobster red has for anyone.

He scratches at his shorts and growls as he finds that, yet again, he has somehow got more sand in his clothes, and he didn't even _move_.

He blames everything on Kakashi, who decided to treat the team by a field trip to the beach. Granted it a was a perfect day, sunny and no clouds for miles, and there was a gentle breeze to boot, but Sasuke just didn't _care. _

Sakura and Naruto went insane.

He looked down the shoreline and saw Sakura spread out on a beach blanket, smile planted on her face as she laid out in a lazy attempt at a beach tan (or burn, he was fairly sure that she was going to burn by her pale complexion). Her bikini was the same shade of red as her usual ninja dress. He made a silent bet with himself that she was going to end up the same color as the outfit.

Turning his head the other direction, he saw Kakashi lounging underneath a beach umbrella, familiar orange book cradled in one hand and an ice tea in the other. The greedy bastard refused to let Sasuke sit under the umbrella.

"_Mah, mah, you should get some sun and enjoy yourself Sasuke. Don't need to lounge under an umbrella with a bastard like me!"_

Bastard indeed, Sasuke gave the teacher the best death glare he could muster without blinding himself from the sun. Instead of receiving the desired effect of one shriveled or exploding teacher, he got a flushed set of cheeks and a hand shooting up to his face as he giggled, ice tea nestled in the sand safely.

Pervert.

Turning his gaze back to the water, he searched the bodies and suddenly found someone wrapping a set of arms under his own, around his waist. He gasped as his body left the ground, and he unconsciously found that the water was actually coming _closer. _

"What the fuck?"

"Neh, neh, we're at the beach! You're supposed to enjoy yourself!"

"Put me down, you annoying moron!"

"As you wish," and with a slight heave-ho, Naruto chucked the Uchiha into the frigid water, earning an outraged wail as skin met with sea.

The splash was deafening, and Sasuke plowed his way back to the shore dog-paddling through water and sand, ignoring the squawks of laughter from the blond. "Ha! You should've seen your face! Dude, you look like a drowned rat!"

Sasuke turned and glared, face flushed. He needed to remedy the situation, and fast.

So he pushed Naruto into the water, and stomped away, ignoring the squelching noises that his shorts were making.

Yeah, he hated the beach.


	28. Theme 28

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 28/45  
**Word Count: **188 words  
**Warning:** None, kinda a character study. Really short one. Just throwing ideas around.  
**Theme: **Naruto

Uzumaki Naruto.

Aloof, goofball, village dobe.

_Warmth._

He glows, his smile is radiant. He is the light in the darkness, taking the lost by the hand and leading them to their destinations with a kind word and a string of hope that he laces around their wrists.

_Light. _

He is the hero of this tale, the protagonist that fights his way through the turmoil of his history. He's the warrior that treads through the thickest of woods, slicing his way through and brushing his way past the fury of the storm.

_Hero._

He'll make a great Hokage one day. When the time comes, they know it to be true. He's fought his whole life, worked so hard, and it should pay off. He needs his happy ending, no matter what some may say.

_Leader._

He has his faults, but really, as Sasuke watches from the rooftop as Naruto spins around in circles with several children chasing close behind him, he couldn't care less.

Naruto is Naruto, nothing can change that.

_("Give me a break; let me make my own pattern - all that it takes is some time.")_


	29. Theme 29

**Drabble Rating:** K+  
**Status:** 29/45  
**Word Count: **271 words  
**Warning:** None, kinda a character study. Really short one. Just throwing ideas around.  
**Theme: **Sasuke

Uchiha Sasuke.

Quiet, loner, avenger, village heartthrob.

_Cold._

His story starts out normal enough, but it turns to a tragedy. Family slaughtered, left for dead, his heart has been betrayed too many times and he can't find it in himself to trust anyone every again.

_Dark._

He dislikes attention, hates to be the focus of anything. He hates having the spotlight, rather favors the corner, hiding away in the shadows and blends with the background. He's used to it, having grown up in the shadows of his talented older brother who was the star in the spotlight of his father's eyes.

_Avenger._

His heart is cold. He has no more love that he can give, it's all gone. His soul is empty, lifeless, ghostly. His entire purpose of existing is to avenge the fallen of his clan and then let everything come-what-may. He has no time for bonds, friendship and relationships have no purpose or function for him _(or so he has convinced himself, but there's something in his heart that throbs painfully when he is at the receiving end of a smile or hug)_.

_Shattered._

It will take time to heal the broken person behind this mask. Naruto smiles wistfully as he finishes wrapping the bandages on Sasuke's arm and watches as the avenger checks them over, testing their strength before nodding in satisfaction. He holds out the other arm and roll of tape and allows Naruto to start wrapping that appendage, and they both know it's a start to a physical repair to a shattered being.

_("Cause everyone is forgiven now; cause tonight's the night the world begins again.")_


	30. Theme 30

**Drabble Rating: **T  
**Status: **30/45  
**Word Count: **548 words  
**Warning: **Violence, language, and yes, a liquor bottle was harmed in the making of this drabble.  
**Theme: **Drinks

It's when Naruto starts to flirt with Shikamaru and comments that he has very pretty hair that it has come to an unanimous decision that he has had too much to drink.

Sakura cuts him off completely, warns the bartender that if he tries to slip him one more bottle that said bottle will be stuffed up his left nostril. When he gives her a look of clear disbelief, Kiba and Chouji both step forward and crack knuckles with evil sneers that don't even belong on their faces. The bartender gets the hint and slinks away, but not before leaving the bill with the head guy of the group, Neji, who passes it off to Sasuke because it's the Uchiha's boyfriend's fault after all.

It's from this point where things get difficult.

Naruto is adamant that he's not drunk, thank you very much, and that the empty liquor bottle on the counter can, in fact, refill itself. He demonstrates by picking it up and tries to pour himself a drink, and when nothing comes out, he moans pitifully. "It's all gone."

"Of course it's gone, you drank it all, along with six others," Ino snaps at him and watches as he starts to claw the counter-top, declaring this space his and that's he's digging for gold now. The blonde female sighs. "You're not listening to me, are you?"

"Hey, 'tender!" He slaps a hand onto the wood and wobbles drunkenly as he waves him over. "Come 'ere."

When the guy ignores him, Naruto declares that he's not leaving his claim till he gets better customer service _right now_.

Sasuke pokes him in the arm and the blond turns his head too fast and falls onto Sakura, who shoves him back onto the stool. "Hey! When did you get here?"

"I've been here. I brought you here. Now I'm bringing you home. Let's go." He goes to grab an arm but suddenly there's a swipe of an angry hand, and his cheek is suddenly stinging.

Sakura's eyes widen as Sasuke's hand reaches up to his face, and there's fresh scratch marks from where Naruto swiped at him like an angry cat. "Sasuke?"

The dark-haired man watches as Naruto proceeds to manhandle Shikamaru, yelling at him to give up the fucking pineapple already because he's hungry, goddamnit. Ino shrieks in outrage, and pries the blond off of him before tossing him completely onto the floor.

It's when Naruto jumps back up to attack the girl that just stole his meal ticket that Sasuke jumps into action. He grabs the empty bottle and waits until Naruto is within reach before he swings it down, _hard. _The bottle shatters on the thick head and the boy drops to the ground like a rock.

This time it's Hinata who shrieks, looking at Sasuke like he just committed murder.

There's several sets of eyes watching him as he places the broken tip of the bottle neck onto the counter and lays several large bills next to it. Neji leans down and places two fingers on the blond's neck before he smirks. "He's still alive."

The loud snore only confirms his statement.

Sasuke grabs the unconscious idiot's ankles and proceeds to drag him out the door without a word.


	31. Theme 31

**Drabble Rating: **T  
**Status: **31/45  
**Word Count:** 622 words**  
Notes: **This was actually inspired by a commercial...sorry, Sasuke-san. Balls will be sacrificed.  
**Warning: **Language, a certain Uchiha's manliness will be harmed, and—general Naruto-being-uberly-stupid. I need to stay away from the television...  
**Theme: **Snow-globe

Sakura said it was a very pretty decoration. The little people inside the glass container appeared to be in a jovial scene – there were buildings decorated with lights, several large pine trees were decorated with colorful bulbs and tinsel, and oh look there, there were several children racing down a small hill on a sled with smiles on their faces.

Naruto gagged at the whole thing, then deciding to play God-Almighty, shook the little thing with all his might before slamming it down onto the counter and stared as everybody was overwhelmed by a sudden snow flurry.

"Gentle with it, Naruto!" The pink haired girl chided as she stirred a chopstick in her bowl of ramen. "It's not made out of rock you know. It's fragile."

"Why would somebody make something like this anyway?" He picks it up and eyeballs it from different angles. "What good is it for?"

"Like I said, Naruto, it's a decoration. It's not used for anything, really."

"So, it's a girly thing."

She clears her throat with agitation and he smiles cheekily at her before he places it back onto the counter with care. "Hehe, sorry, Sakura-chan."

It's at this time that Sasuke decides to enter the scene and sits down next to the blond. The moment he does, his eyes suddenly beeline for the snow-globe. "Naruto, something you want to tell me?"

The blond follows his gaze before squawking. "It's Sakura's!"

The girl smiles and pushes it towards him. "It's a present for Naruto. I figured he needed something to liven his house up during the winter months, you know?"

"But Sakuraaaa – "

Sasuke smirks. "It'll look fabulous next to the lace doily on his bedside stand, I'm sure."

Naruto swings a fist around to clobber the smart-ass in the chin but Sasuke has already jumped up and is standing just outside the curtains to the restaurant. "You bastard! I don't have a doily, whatever the hell it is!"

"Whatever. You ready to get your ass kicked?" He is practically chirping at this and it's only feeding into Naruto's pissy furnace.

"Hey! We'll see whose ass gets kicked." Naruto turns away to lay down his money before he eyes the globe evilly. He picks it up and turns back to the Uchiha who is patiently waiting in the doorway, looking down the street. "Hey, Sasukeeee –"

Before the Uchiha can move, before Sakura can make a mad grab for the lead-weight in the blond's hand, before Naruto's brain screamed, "BAD IDEA YOU'RE GONNA DIE NICE KNOWING YAH.", the idiot brought his arm back and hurled the decoration at Sasuke.

The snow-globe sails through the air like a cannonball, and before the Uchiha has time to react, it pelts him –

– right in the crotch.

Sasuke's eyes widen as his face suddenly changes colors, and he grasps his man bits as he drops to the ground, curled up and wheezing.

Naruto suddenly feels a death aura coming from the person next to him and doesn't even have time to run before she smashes his face into the ground with a gloved fist.

"Sakura! LET ME EXPLAIN!"

"YOU MADE SASUKE-KUN A WOMAN, WHAT'S THERE TO EXPLAIN?"

"I WAS AIMING FOR HIS HEAD!"

"WELL, YOUR AIM SUCKS. GET SOME ICE, NOW."

The snow-globe innocently laid forgotten in the street, people inside still smiling.


	32. Theme 32

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status: **32/45**  
Word Count:** 237 words**  
Warning:** Language. I love Sai. (heart)**  
Theme:** Sai

If there was anything that people learned when Naruto and Sasuke got together, was that nobody could have Naruto except that very Uchiha. That meant no certain girls with crushes, no teachers (sorry Iruka, no Ichiraku for Naruto. He's bedridden at the moment), and that certainly covered the criteria for teammates.

Including a certain dark-haired ninja that was a fucking _clone _of him.

Sai raised a hand in greeting as Sasuke and Naruto went to pass him. "Morning Sasuke."

Sasuke snorted and continued on his journey. He didn't get far when Sai spoke up again.

"Naruto, your boyfriend is certainly moody this morning. Is his aggression a result of your lacking in penis size and leaving him feeling unsatisfied? He is the bitch of this relationship, yes?"

It took both Sakura and Kiba to yank back Sasuke and Naruto to prevent them from killing the dark haired man who continued to smile at them like he had spoke merely of the weather.

"My penis size is fine, you DICK!"

"Our relationship is none of your business!"

"Let me go, dog-breath, I HAVE TO KILL SOMEONE."

"Sakura, if you truly loved me, you'll help me hide his body when I'm done."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at Sai. "It's tempting Sai, so if I suddenly let go, you're on your own."

The dark haired man chose to be wise at the moment, and disappeared in a flurry of smoke.


	33. Theme 33

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status: **33/45**  
Word Count:** 449 words**  
Warning:** Mmm, none.**  
Theme:** Will

It was another normal day at the household, and by normal meaning that Sasuke was outside training while Naruto was inside methodically cleaning.

And by cleaning we mean snooping.

Who wouldn't take this as an opportunity? It's not everyday that one Uzumaki Naruto is in a relationship with one Uchiha Sasuke, village heartthrob. It's also not everyday said heartthrob allows that one Uzumaki to move in with him.

Mistake? It all depends on Sasuke's moods, and when he's not in the mood, it's a definite mistake and Naruto is locked outside for hours with him begging at the door.

On this seemingly normal day, Naruto found that with Sasuke outside, he could finally get an inside look on his boyfriend's home life. To learn his quirks, his likes, his dislikes, some things that he keeps around the house, to learn more about him in general. So he started in the best spot in the house-

He started with Sasuke's dresser.

"Hm, boxers...boxers...briefs..." Naruto shuffled through the drawer almost like it was a prize box, looking for anything out of place.

Two pointy kunais in the thumbs later, and two drawers down, he hit pay-dirt.

A scroll.

It wasn't sealed, nor was it labeled, so it just screamed for him to read it.

So, being the ever clever and methodical ninja that he was, Naruto hopped onto the bed and started to read.

As he read further down the page, his entire body went cold.

_'This...this is...!'_

"What are you doing?"

Blue eyes popped up from the scroll and glared venomously at the Uchiha. "What the hell is this?"

Sasuke glared back. "I asked you a question first."

"I'm reading it, what the hell does it look like? But that's not the point," He jumped to his feet and stomped across the room, jabbing a finger at the thick paper. "What. The. Hell. Is. This?"

This time, the Uchiha remained silent. He looked away, hesitant to respond. After a moment of shifting glances, and awkward shuffling, his gaze met with the blond's. "It's a will."

"I can see that, why the hell did you make it?" The boy spat.

Sasuke shrugged. "Why not? We're ninja. We have dangerous jobs. If something should happen to me—I want to make sure you have everything you need."

Something tugged at his heartstrings, and Naruto bowed his head. "Sasuke—that's nice and all, but, it won't give me everything that I need."

Black eyes shot back to him with alarm. "What?"

A frown settled on the blond's face as he rolled the scroll up and handed it back to the Uchiha. "Face it—you can leave me a fortune, a house, all the ramen in the world, but with you gone, nothing matters."


	34. Theme 34

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status: **34/45**  
Word Count:** 218 words**  
Warning:** Pr0n? Not this time. **  
Theme:** Wake

Naruto hates waking up to an empty bed. His personal furnace is gone, left with the dwindling heat on the sheets—not to mention, there's no morning quickie.

That is if he's awake enough for one and if Sasuke is even in the mood. Nine times out of ten, he's shot down because his "morning breath is strong enough to kill the next ten Hokages", to which he cleverly responds that he can kill himself with his own breath.

That is where Sasuke's foot connects with his stomach and he finds himself half sprawled on the floor with a good portion of the sheets tangled in his legs.

This morning, however, his heater is still in bed with him, half conscious to the world. Dark eyes are half-lidded, riddled with the fading effects of sleep. The boy blinks a couple times before he turns his head and yawns gently, a fist comes up to rub at his eyes. "Good morning."

Naruto smiles and scoots closer to him, feeling the heat radiating through the Uchiha's shirt. He rests his head on Sasuke's chest and throws an arm across him. "Good morning to you, too."

There's no morning sex, nor is there any arguing—merely the happiness of being in each other's company.

–and that's all they need.


	35. Theme 35

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status: **35/45**  
Word Count:** 210 words**  
Warning:** Bwahaha. **  
Theme:** Anniversary

He finds himself quite pleasantly surprised when he gets home from training to find a card on the table with his name scrawled on it neatly. He opens it, frowns when he reads the contents to himself.

_'Come over to my house. Dobe'._

He feels a tick in his eye, throws the card back onto the table and goes about his business of cleaning up before he goes on this mad treasure hunt the asshole left for him.

Not much later he's at his destination and finds another card nearly tacked to the door. He pries it off and reads the content.

_'Inside. Dobe.'_

He throws the card to the ground and shoves the offending barricade open, stomping inside. After he slams the door he completely ignores another offending white object on the kitchen table in favor of heading right into the bedroom.

There's great satisfaction when he barges through the door and finds Sasuke sprawled on the bed staring at him in utter bewilderment. Naruto pounces on him and the Uchiha lets out a hissing noise that sounds an awful lot like him bitching about skipping the last clue.

The blond leans close to whisper in his ear. "Why can't you celebrate our anniversary like a normal person?"


	36. Theme 36

**Drabble Rating:** K**  
Status:** 36/45**  
Word Count:** 193 words**  
Warning:** None.  
**Theme:** New Home

It's a few years down the road that Sasuke unexpectedly pops the question.

"Let's start over."

Naruto drops his chopsticks and gapes. "What?"

"I said," Sasuke places his own chopsticks in the bowl. "Let's start over."

Naruto has several billion questions running through his mind. 'Start over? What does he mean start over? Did I mess up something? Does he not like how our relationship has been going? I did something wrong, didn't I? What—'

Sasuke's knuckles suddenly rap gently on his head and his eyes are laughing. "Baka, I meant let's start over with a home. I'm always going to your apartment, you come to mine. Let's get a place of our home—take a step forward, something new."

The blond looks away with a blush. "You scared me. You made me think I messed up something. You should've worded it differently."

The dark-haired ninja nods. "True, but baka, if you don't mess something up, I would think something was wrong with you." He holds out a hand. "Let's go house hunting, neh?"

Naruto stares at the hand for a moment before he grabs it with a grin. "Let's do this."


	37. Theme 37

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status:** 37/45**  
Word Count:** 199 words**  
Warning:** None. **  
Theme:** Headache

Normally when Sasuke arrives home from training or a mission, there's a blond bundle of energy that greets him. Today isn't one of those days.

In fact, the moment he slides the door open, the house is dark and quiet—too quiet.

As soon as he slides his sandals off, he's wandering down the hallway with caution. Perhaps Naruto headed out for the day?

He enters the kitchen to check for a note but there is none, so he heads towards the bedroom—

-and that's where he finds him.

Naruto is curled up on the bed, the blinds drawn to darken the room. He has a hand curled over his eyes and it's evident from his breathing that he's not asleep.

"Naruto?" Sasuke enters the room and gently sits on the mattress. "You okay?"

The blond groans. "Head hurts. Everything is too loud, too bright."

"Have you been drinking with Jiraiya again?"

He snorts. "I wish it was a hangover, but no. It started a little while ago."

Sasuke reached over and gently started to massage his temples. "Relax dobe, I'm right here."

Naruto opened his eyes a small crack and smiled before closing them again. "Thanks, teme."


	38. Theme 38

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status:** 38/45**  
Word Count:** 220 words**  
Warning:** None **  
Theme:** Age

With every life, there is a beginning, middle, and an end. It comes towards the end of the middle where Sasuke notes a huge difference with Naruto.

The blond, known for his extraordinary healing, starts to heal very slowly, almost at a normal speed.

Sasuke notices it one day after Naruto gets a cut on his arm. Hours later, the cut is still on his arm, not completely healed but not bleeding.

"Dobe, you okay?"

Naruto looks at Sasuke questioningly but when the Uchiha pokes his arm he shrugs. "Oh, that's been happening a lot lately. Not sure why, but eh," he shrugs.

The next instance is a month later when Naruto sprains his wrist in a battle exercise. A week later the sprain is still sore and it's discolored.

"I think maybe I did more than sprain it," Naruto says that week and watches as Sasuke wraps it. "I might've broken it or something."

"Aren't you worried?" Sasuke looks up and the blond stares back.

"Why?"

"You don't heal the way you used to."

Naruto shrugs. "As long as I'm not dying, it's fine."

That thought never occurred to Sasuke, but now that it was brought up, he worries for Naruto's wellbeing.

He just never says anything every time he has to wrap another sprain or stitch another cut.


	39. Theme 39

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status:** 39/45**  
Word Count:** 161 words**  
Warning:** None. **  
Theme:** Hokage

When Tsunade steps down from her position, Naruto isn't the one to step up to the plate.

It's not Kakashi either. In fact, it's Shikamaru who takes the position.

It's a surprise to everyone except for Naruto.

Many ask him if he's angry and he always stares at them in confusion.

"Why would I be mad? Shikamaru is smart—if anyone can lead the village it's him! The only thing I would look out for is his laziness. He is the most laid-back ninja there is you know."

Sasuke doesn't act surprised when the news is announced.

"You asked him to become Hokage, didn't you?"

Naruto shakes his head. "No, actually, he asked me if it was okay. I know that being Hokage is a lot of work, and I don't think I'm ready for it just yet."

Sasuke smirks. "Wow, Naruto, that demonstrates a lot of maturity. You must have grown up a lot to realize that."

"Shut up, Sasuke."


	40. Theme 40

**Drabble Rating:** K**  
Status:** 40/45**  
Word Count:** 162 words**  
Warning:** None. **  
Theme:** Lazy Afternoon

It's a rare opportunity when there's no mission for them to go on.

It's even rarer so when Sasuke decides to forego training and in exchange, decides to spend the day with Naruto.

Such a rare occasion is happening today, actually, and both ninjas found themselves lying on the grass on the shore of the nearby lake.

The sun was bright but not overbearing, not a single cloud in the sky. There was a gentle breeze, barely there but comfortable. There were no loud children running around nearby—they were alone.

Naruto was lying on his back, one leg crossed over the other with his head cushioned on crossed arms. Sasuke was lying with his hands cradled comfortably on his stomach, legs outstretched in front of him.

Naruto casually glanced over at Sasuke, who in turn looked back at him. Wordlessly, they smiled at each other before closing their eyes and drifted into a peaceful afternoon nap.

It was a peaceful scene.


	41. Theme 41

**Drabble Rating:** K+**  
Status:** 41/45**  
Word Count:** 224 words**  
Warning:** None  
**Theme:** Memory of You

It's the stupid potted plant that catches his attention.

It's small, wilting, but it has his attention hook, line, and _sucker_.

He doesn't know what it is about the plant that does it, until a short while later he realizes that it looks like the type of plant that Naruto would buy and nurse back to the health.

So he buys it and carries it home sheepishly, ignoring the smartass remarks of villagers.

When he gets home the first thing he does is gives it to Naruto.

The blond looks at it curiously before quirking an eyebrow at the Uchiha. "Where did you get this?"

"I bought it."

"Why? It's dying."

Sasuke looks away. "I know. But—it reminded me of you."

Naruto laughs. "A dying plant made you think of me?"

The dark haired man twitches. "No, a plant that wasn't given a chance made me think of you because you give everyone a second chance."

Naruto was silent, a look of awe and pride and understanding in his eyes. He smiled. "I see. Well, let's see what I can do, neh? I bet you this will be the most beautiful plant yet, with a little love and care it will bloom and grow." He brought the plant towards the sink and started to tend to it.

Sasuke watched and smiled to himself.


	42. Theme 42

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status:** 42/45**  
Word Count:** 142 words**  
Warning:** Language.  
**Theme:** Retirement

When Sasuke starts to find it difficult to see his target, he puts his weapons away. His hair is salt and peppered lightly, not enough to declare him "old" by Naruto's standards, but his vision makes it difficult to remain a high ranked ninja regardless.

While it was a difficult choice to make, Naruto is glad that Sasuke made it. He worried enough about him, he didn't need to worry about whether he got killed cause he didn't see a trap or tripped to his death, or fell and broke his hip or something.

"I'm not that old, baka."

"Well, I worry about you!"

"Naruto, I'm not so old and frail that if I fell I would break my hip. That sounds like something that you would do."

"Asshole! Just you wait, I'll never retire! I'll be a ninja forever!"

"Tch, baka."


	43. Theme 43

**Drabble Rating:** K**  
Status:** 43/45**  
Word Count:** 169 words**  
Warning:** None  
**Theme:** Regrets

Naruto is always full of surprises, which is why it shouldn't come as a shock when he goes up to Sasuke one day and pops him such a ridiculous question. "Do you regret not having kids?"

Does he regret it?

On one hand, he misses his family. He only knew them for such a short time and he often wonders how different his life would've been if they had lived. Would he have married? Would he have settled down with a woman, had children, and continued being a ninja?

On the other hand, he is glad that the Uchiha bloodline is disappearing with him. No more harm can come to innocent people. The selfish and dangerous bloodline will go to the grave with him when his time comes.

Regardless, the sum of his thoughts come to the single conclusion that he voices to Naruto.

"No, because I don't need kids. I have you, and that's all I need."

The way Naruto's face lights up afterwards is well worth it.


	44. Theme 44

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status:** 44/45**  
Word Count:** 411 words**  
Warning:** Character Death  
**Theme:** Waiting

It comes as a shock to the entire village.

He seemed so healthy, so alive, and yet—he never opened his eyes that morning.

Sasuke was the one to find him. He had rose early that day to make breakfast, a tradition that they had started after they both retired, and had continued for the next fifteen years. He had returned to the bedroom to wake him with a good morning kiss and had found him cold to the touch, his chest completely still.

The medic did a quick look over and determined that he had passed peacefully in his sleep at a prime age of eighty, yet it was far too young for Sasuke.

His funeral was a simple one, yet every ninja far and wide showed up. Naruto, the world renowned ninja known for his kindness, his bravery, his heart, had left his mark on the world.

Many gave Sasuke their condolences, few passed by without kind words, but those in the village stayed close by in his time of mourning.

Later that night, he walked home with Sakura at his side. He opened the door and entered, allowing her to follow when he went to the kitchen where he made himself comfortable at the table.

"Will you be all right?" She asked, hovering quietly without intending to intrude on him.

He bowed his head. "I miss him, and I know he wasn't suffering, and I am glad. I will be all right. I just need some time to myself."

She nodded, patting his hand. "If you need anything, please don't hesitate." She placed a gentle kiss to his cheek before she left, closing the door with a gentle click behind her.

Sasuke remained at the table, staring at the empty spot where the blond ninja had always seated himself. For now and until the end, it would always remain empty, just like the other half of the bed, the other half of the patio swing, and the rest of the house.

Sasuke bowed his head. "Naruto, I will live—but I only live to see you again. I know you would be angry if I continued to live depressed, but Naruto, I am sad. You were my other half, and I miss you."

That night when he went to bed, he felt a set of arms around him, and the whispers in his ear of quiet _I love you's _and _please don't be sad, Sasuke, we'll meet again. _


	45. Theme 45

**Drabble Rating:** T**  
Status:** 45/45**  
Word Count:** 304 words**  
Warning:** Character Death  
**Theme:** Afterlife

Three years after Naruto died, Sasuke fell ill and slipped away during fever.

He couldn't recall the actual sensation of death, he just remembered everything going white in his vision. The world grew hazy, and before he knew it, his wrinkled old hands had regenerated to the young flesh from his youth. His scars gone, his hair no longer peppered, and his vision clear, he found himself wandering in a village lit with brightly lit festival lanterns with paper animals decorating doorways and porches.

In his dark blue yukata and fan, he wandered the streets and passed many unfamiliar faces, many donning masks of animals from lore.

It wasn't until he rounded a corner did he finally spot a familiar face.

In the orange yukata, wielding a fan with the fox donned on it in black paint, Naruto stood and was staring at the bright lights and boisterous atmosphere.

Sasuke felt a clenching in his chest. "Naruto!"

The blond jumped, head turning to the source of the voice and stared in awe. "Sasuke?"

Sasuke pushed through the crowd, determination set into his fresh new bones and flesh and refused to back down until he was by his side. "Naruto—is it—are you really?"

Naruto's blue eyes twinkled. "Hello, teme."

The Uchiha smiled. "Baka."

He reached out, searched under the overflow of fabric for the blond's hand, and clasped it. "Let's go."

"Where are we going?"

Sasuke tugged him close, felt themselves connecting as one. "Anywhere you want, we have all the time in the world."

Naruto laughed, jumping up to kiss him on the cheek, and dashed forward, yanking the Uchiha through the crowd.

The lights dashed by in boisterous bursts of color and sounds, and yet the only world they saw, was in each other's eyes.

That was all that they needed.

* * *

**Author's Note:  
**It's been a long ride, and it's finally completed. I apologize it took so long. I will not be continuing with another installation. I thank everyone who had participated, pushed me, and gave me ideas. Thank you so much.

_Mint Pizza Queen_


End file.
